


FFVII Folk Tales: Ramuh, Master of Lightnings

by ixieko



Series: FFVII Folk Tales [2]
Category: Compilation of Final Fantasy VII, Final Fantasy VII
Genre: Folklore, Gen, Original Character(s)
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-01-03
Updated: 2016-01-03
Packaged: 2018-05-11 09:46:54
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 758
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5622961
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ixieko/pseuds/ixieko
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>There are a lot of legends in the world featuring an old wise man named Ramuh; this is one of them.</p>
            </blockquote>





	FFVII Folk Tales: Ramuh, Master of Lightnings

Once upon a time, in a village on the southern slopes of _Anavaren_ (Mountains on the northern shore of Western continent - M.) lived good, hard-working people. They dug mines, and mined iron ore and gold ore and went to the trade town of _Andamanmi_ , where white-faced, blue-eyed people of South took ore in exchange for wheat, and cotton, and sugar, and explosives, and instruments, and everything the villagers needed.

Years upon years they lived in peace, until one day one southern _kan_ (ruler of the land - M.) came to their village and said:  
"Your land is rich with metals, and I want these metals. From now on, you all will work for me."

"We will work for you, if you will give us what we need in exchange," The chieftain said. "Otherwise, go where you came from and forget the road to our village."  
The kan was furious, he took his gun and shot the chieftain, and said, “You all will work for me, or else you all will die.”  
And so, they worked, digging up ore for the greedy kan. With every year, he became more and more greedy, and demanded more and more ore, and gave less and less in exchange, and villagers became poor and unhappy. Many tried to escape, but kan’s goons captured them and returned them back to mines.

One stormy night, a stranger came into the village, a very, very old man. He went to the small hut on the very edge of the village, and knocked, and asked: “The air is cold, and the rain is strong. Please, let me spend the night in your home.”  
A woman opened the door, saw the stranger, and said, “Oh, good man, I would be only happy to help you, but if the goons see you, they would not let you go. Please, run, good man, run from our cursed village, while you still can.”  
But the man said, “The night is cold, and the wind is strong. Please, let me spend the night in your home, and I will help you.”  
"How can you help us," The woman said, sighing in sadness, "You are so old, you are barely standing upright on you feet."  
But she opened her door, and let the old man in, and shared her food with him.  
In the morning, when the woman woke up, the stranger was already gone, but he left a round, red, glowing stone on the table. When the woman took it in her hand, she heard the voice of the old man, saying, “When you are in trouble, call Ramuh, and I will come to your help.”

The woman went out of her hut, holding the stone in her hand, and wanted to show it to other villagers, but the kan, who was visiting the village, saw her and shouted, “Where did you get this Summon Materia, woman? Give it to me at once!”  
His goons ran to her and tried to take the stone from her, and she shouted: “Ramuh, Ramuh, help me!”  
The sky turned dark, and a big cliff appeared in front of the kan. On the very top of the cliff, the old man stood, and he said, “Who it is who oppresses these people? You, kan?”  
The kan shot the old man, but did not harm him, and then he was scared and tried to run, but the old man summoned powerful lightning, and it struck the kan and his goons, and they all were reduces to ash. After that, the cliff disappeared, and the red stone too. Instead of them, the old man appeared, the same who came to the village the night before.  
"Thank you, good man," The woman said, and bowed to him, "What do you want in exchange?"  
The man said, “Only one thing. The world is full of greedy kans, and you should learn to defend your land. Consider this your payment for my services.”

With that, the old man turned away and went out of the village, and they never saw him again.

People say that Ramuh comes only to those who are desperately in need of help, and never stays for long. That’s why we have a saying, “Ramuh helps those who help themselves.”

_(From “The tales of North”, Evan Marius, 1932)_

* * *

 

_(Sidenote: “Someone who can transform into a Summon Materia and back, at will? Could it be a Cetra?” - G.F.)  
(Sidenote: “Seriously, Gast. It’s just a legend. Changing into a Materia and back at will is **absolutely impossible**.” - G.V.)_


End file.
